Chapter 31
TRUCK
After church, I quickly head home. I want to get my cut on Rory’s back.
I hadn’t wanted to settle down with a woman until I met Rory, and she instantly gained my attention.
I’m just thankful that she liked me enough to give me a chance.
Everything has happened quickly, which is why I am making sure she knows me and trusts me.
I’m in this for the long haul, and I don’t think for one minute that Rory isn’t, because she is not the type of person to lead you on or commit to someone falsely.
Walking into the house, I shout while grinning like a fool. “Honey, I’m home!”
Hearing a giggle, I head to the kitchen where Rory is writing in a large notebook.
But she quickly closes the book and steps toward me, grabbing my cut and pulling me down for a kiss.
Too right we kiss when I come home, we kiss when I leave.
We kiss whenever we feel like it and don’t give a shit who is watching.
“What have you got there?”
“Well, babe. I ordered this and today in church you were officially honored by the brothers when they all voted for you as my old lady. Now, before you say anything let me explain that if someone is, for example, a mean bitch, a brother could vote to stop that person being an official old lady of the club. The old lady of a brother has the entire club at her back. They will protect her, support her, and make sure if anything happened to her man they’d provide if she needed it.
” I pause because Rory is standing in front of me with a shocked look on her face and fuck it, a tear running down her cheek.
“Don’t cry, babe. It’s a good thing. In the eyes of the club, you are like my wife, but we will get married when we’re ready.
So that’s not an issue we need to worry about. It’ll happen when you are ready.”
“Married? You want to get married?” Rory again looks shocked.
“Of course. I’m not playing house, Rory.
I’m in love with you, and I know you are with me.
You don’t even have to say it. But of course, we’ll get married whenever you want to.
If you want a posh wedding, we’ll do that, but I’m not wearing no monkey suit.
If you want to go to Vegas and get married by Elvis, we can do that, or we can get married at the clubhouse.
No matter to me where we get married, babe. ”
Rory throws her arms around my waist and tucks her face into my neck.
I quickly put the box down and wrap my arms around her.
Holding onto her tightly. I know this has something to do with Terrence and losing him, but she’s gotta move on from him and forward with me.
I’ll not let a ghost stand in my way. Mentally, I reach out to Pyro and ask him to move Terrence along and light up his ass if he loiters.
When Rory has finished sniffling, she looks up at me and I can see the love shining in her eyes, although they are watery as shit. “So, are you gonna try your property patch on?” I state while doing my best to keep it light.
Taking it out of the box, Rory reads the back and frowns a little. “Property of?”
“Yeah, you are mine and now the world knows it. I’m damn proud to call you mine, Rory.
The patch shows you are under the protection of the club because you are mine, and it tells every bitch on the planet that I am yours.
We are not a club that commits to our woman and then fucks around. That is not who we are.”
Rory turns the patch around and frowns. “Why does it say Numbers?”
I explained how she got her name, and Pres was the one who gave it to her.
Along with the fact that he gave Cilla her Seer name, it is becoming a tradition.
She giggles at the fact that the president of a motorcycle club gives names to his brother’s women.
I have to admit it is unusual, but then, who said or expected anything normal from Tracker!
I smile as I watch Rory parade around the kitchen as though she’s on a model’s runway. Twirling now and again. I wait for her to get close enough, and I grab her up, wrapping her tightly in my arms before kissing her thoroughly.
“I’m going to pick Grady up from Jill’s and take him to the clubhouse where he’ll help Jet do some chores on the compound fencing.
Then I’m heading to the gas station. I’ll see you later, babe,” I say all that, then quickly get an extra kiss before I head out.
Leaving Rory a little dazed makes me feel really proud of myself.
Walking into the clubhouse forty minutes later, after leaving Grady with Jet, I give Cap a nod as he passes me by. I look around for Cilla and find her sitting in the corner of the common room where Ayla is snoring in the crib, I quickly head her way.
“Morning, Cilla!” I give her a smile when she rolls her eyes after I said that.
“Of course, I’ll keep popping outside and checking he’s good. But Jet is great and he’ll make sure Grady is okay, so I wouldn’t worry if I were you.”
“I know Jet will look after him. He is only eleven and I don’t want him saying he’s okay if he’s not. You’ll be able to check if he’s good, and if he isn’t, give me a call Cilla and I’ll come for him,” I mean every word. I will come for him if he’s worried or scared.
“Watch out!” Cilla snaps, and I turn in time to see a table shoot forward towards my legs. I grab it before it can hit me, and I turn, giving Cilla a questioning look.
“What’s goin’ on?” I snarl.
Cilla shakes her head and points at whoever the fuck is playing games this morning. “I told you to pack it in and move on. I’ll have one of my boys sort you out if you keep this up.”
Now, I can’t see who the fuck she’s talking to. Cap, who had reentered the common room is standing watching with a frown on his face. Tracker walks into the common room and takes in the atmosphere before walking toward Cilla and I.
“What’s going on, Cilla?” Tracker asks.
Cilla takes a deep breath as she turns her attention to Tracker.
“This man has died, obviously, and it seems he is pissed that his wife found out he had a second family. He made sure the second family had lots of insurance coverage in case, you know, he died. But he left his legal wife with a ton of debt and no insurance...”
The table shoots forward toward Cilla, and Tracker grabs it. Picks it up and throws it across the room before quietly stating. “Fuck off, asshole. I’m going to get my brothers to sort you out if you try one more fuckin’ thing.”
A chair shoots toward Tracker, and I mean that thing is in the air. Cap shoots forward and grabs it before I or Tracker can. Cap whirls around and snarls. “Pyro, do your thing!”
Cilla jumps to her feet, holding her hands over her mouth, eyes as wide as dinner plates. Tracker, of course, has to say something. “Well, by the look on your face, Seer, I’d like to know what’s goin’ on. I wish I could see what you see, Cilla. It’s gotta be interesting.”
“Well, it seems the wife was so pissed that she had her husband cremated, and she threw his ashes into a cesspit that was in the process of being fitted on a new house build. She must have thought he deserved the same ton of shit he left her in.” Cilla sits back down after that small tirade of information.
“Oh, Pyro and Tank have him, and he’s now got his ass on fire.
They are going to make him move on, but I’m not sure we will see what they are capable of, as they are blocking me out now. ”
“God, I love that,” Tracker says as he chuckles, “She has everyone shitting on him.” I watch as Tracker notices Ayla is awake, picks her up and walks away with her, murmuring to her about how great her godfather is, and how no boys had better get near her until she’s fifty.
Finger passes Tracker in the doorway and attempts to take Ayla, but I chuckle when Tracker snarls and snaps his teeth at Finger, which has Ayla giving that sweet gurgling type of laugh she does.
It’s the one that turns into a belly laugh, and I admit it has everyone around her laughing along with her.
An hour later, I am sitting in the gas station office while Rum teaches me how to work the billboard advertising. It’s interesting, but not really my thing. If Rum retires, I reckon I’ll have to get someone else to do this because I’m not ever going to be an advertising mogul.
“We have six businesses from town now advertising on the billboard. It’s bringing in a good bit of cake,” Rum says.
I look at him shocked, but smirk as I repeat, “Cake!”
Rum laughs, “Yeah, that’s what Dice calls it.”
A tap on the door has both me and Rum looking up from the monitor. Coin and Books step into the room and hand a folder to me, which I open and lay on the desk so Rum can also look.
“That is the information we’ve dug up for the pit-stop idea you had, Truck.
It’s a good idea, and I fully support it.
I know a few long-haul truckers and they would be more than happy to find somewhere they could park, have a shower, eat, drink and sleep for a while,” Coin points to a bunch of figures under a sheet of paper headed—token slots—that is a good figure, far better than I expected.
Rum taps the paper with his pointer finger. “So that cost is for a new token slot machine added to each of the showers?”
Coin nods. “Yeah. They pay for the token at the gas station. It can only be used once as it drops into the bottom of the token box upon use. If they want another shower, they have to purchase another token.”
Books is nodding in agreement. “We reckon with the purchase of the machines and tokens being a one-time thing it’s only the cleaning that is going to cost us anything.
Coin came up with a figure after I had Keys check what other companies charged to use a token and for what reason.
I think we need a cleaner who will come in daily to clean the place.
It depends on how long it will take to do the job, as to how much it will cost to hire someone. ”
“I know someone who may do it,” Rum drops into the conversation, and the three of us turn to look at him. “Well, she eats at the diner, and I’ve noticed she’s gotten thinner of late. You know Briony, she looked after her parents when they had that accident.”
“Briony Glover?” Books asks while sporting a frown. “She was the one whose parents had that accident on the black ice. Ran off the road and they both ended up in a vegetative state. She had to switch them both off from the machines I heard.”
“Yeah, that’s the one,” Rum replies, then continues. “She was paying the medical bills. From what I heard, she just got them paid when she lost her job because the jewelry store closed. They were an old couple, and they didn’t have kids so they had no one to leave the business to.”
Coin shakes his head. “That’s tough. But if she needs a job, then let’s give her a shot. It’s only cleaning, so she doesn’t need a degree for that.”
Rum nods. “I’ll ask her if she’s interested, and if she is I’ll ask her to give them a cleaning so we can see how long it will take to do them. After she’s done that, we will have an idea of the time involved, and we can throw a figure for a wage at her.”
“Good. You do that, then get back to me,” Coin says as he and Books turn to leave the office.
Once they left, I look at Rum. “If we could help Briony that would be a good thing. Does she have any other relatives?”
“No. She was an only child, and I don’t remember her parents having family.
They were quiet people, kept to themselves, and far too young to have died.
Briony will only be in her late twenties I would think, at a guess anyway.
” Rum shakes his head as he turns back to his monitor.
That’s my cue to know he’s not going to discuss it more, so I head out to see if I’m needed at the counter or forecourt.
In the shop area of the gas station, I pause when I see Bull behind the counter speaking with Xero. Stepping closer, I hear Bull ask, “When Rum has a minute will you ask him to double-check your cameras to see if it picked up anyone around the back near the recovery vehicles.”
“What’s going on?” I ask.
Bull looks at me and shrugs. “I’m not sure, Truck.
My cameras picked up movement at the back of the gas station, near two of the recovery vehicles last night.
But it’s not clear who or what is going on.
I want Rum to check your camera feed and see what it picked up.
I didn’t want to disturb you in your meeting with Coin and Books, or I would have come straight to the office. ”
“I’ll check, Bull. If there is anything you need to see, I’ll give a shout out.
But you are right, our cameras are placed slightly differently to yours, so we may see something more clearly.
” I turn and head back to the office where I’ll check it out now because if things get busy I’m going to forget, and this is security, so we need to be on the ball.